The MCU has been pointing fingers at Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, and Wanda Maximoff for years when the multiverse begins to fall apart. Strange casts a dangerous spell, Wanda tears through realities, and suddenly entire universes are colliding.
There is, however, a larger question under all of this: What if everything is Loki’s fault?
Loki Chose Freedom Over Control
In ‘Loki’ Season 2, Loki breaks the Temporal Loom and takes the role of holding the branching timelines together. He does not let the TVA edit reality when it’s threatening; he embraces free will and allows those timelines to happen. This is a beautiful choice. But it could also be the one that killed the multiverse.
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He Who Remains wasn’t exactly a hero, but his system had a purpose. The TVA’s ruthless timeline pruning prevented uncontrolled branching and helped to prevent alternate universes from growing into another multiversal war. Loki doesn’t believe in that way of thinking.
But by destroying the Loom and sustaining the timelines himself, he essentially removes the Multiverse’s safety net. He can kill the Loom and preserve the timelines, effectively eliminating the safety net of the Multiverse. All possibilities can now go on.
Each decision can branch off into a new branch. Each branch may create its own universe at any time. And that alters the way we view things like ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ and ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’. Strange’s spell doesn’t make the multiverse. Wanda does not make alternative realities. These realities are already in existence. Loki’s choice simply allows them to remain.
The Hero Who May Have Created The Perfect Storm
This makes Loki’s sacrifice much more complicated. He saves free will, but free will comes with consequences. Some universes will collide. Some versions of heroes will become threats. And some realities will destroy others. Finally, someone will come to the conclusion that infinite realities are too risky to allow them to run free.
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That’s where Doctor Doom can be crucial. Doom doesn’t have to be totally wrong about the issue, as ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ looks at the ramifications of uncontrolled multiversal expansion. He can see the chaos of infinite branching and say that the Multiverse requires someone to bring order.
And that makes for an interesting irony. Loki has been holding the Multiverse together for eternity, so that everyone may be free. Doom could decide that freedom itself is the problem. Maybe it’s not a multiversal crisis for the MCU after all. It began when Loki chose to let every possible story exist.
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